Social Security Disability and SSI: The Application Process

To apply for Social Security Disability or SSI benefits based on disability, a person must first make a claim (fill out an application). This is done by contacting the Social Security office, either by phone or by visiting a local office.

Initiating Your Disability Claim

The best method for initiating a disability claim is debatable. As many individuals can attest, getting through on the phone to apply for Social Security can be a difficult task in itself. On the other hand, trying to be seen as a walk-in at your local Social Security office can mean hours of waiting simply to be given an appointment to return at a later date.

It's probably better to use the phone. By calling when Social Security opens, you can avoid the telephone log jam. Also, by calling, you can arrange for a phone interview rather than an interview conducted in-person, if you want. Interviewing over-the-phone is typically more convenient than traveling to the Social Security office.

Disability Determination Process

Although disability applications are filed at the Social Security office, that is not where they are evaluated. Completed disability applications are actually sent to state agencies called Disability Determination Services, or DDS for short. At DDS, claims are assigned to disability specialists known as disability claims examiners. Examiners are the individuals who make initial decisions on Social Security cases.

How long a Social Security disability case stays at DDS depends on many factors, such as how many cases a particular examiner has, or how long it takes an examiner to gather a claimant's medical information. Consequently, a claim may be at DDS for as little as a month, or as long as several months. There is really no way to know, even for the examiner, how long a Social Security disability case may take. Therefore, when Social Security advises that a decision will be made within 90 to 120 days, take this with many grains of salt.

Follow Up with DDS

Because DDS processes claims, it is pointless to call the SSA to inquire about the status of the claim while the claim is at the DDS. However, it is a very good idea to contact the disability examiner while the case is at DDS. This is for several reasons:

• The disability examiner usually knows what is happening on a claim, and can readily provide the information.
• Examiners who are bugged by applicants tend to work on their claims faster (naturally, to avoid more phone calls).
• Unlike the Social Security office, DDS is usually accessible by phone (Social Security can provide the number for local DDS).

What Happens at the DDS

In the course of working on a benefits claim for Social Security or SSI, a disability examiner may do one or more of the following:

• Send letters to the claimant's medical sources (doctors, hospitals, and clinics) to request medical records.
• Make calls to the claimant, or the claimant's friends or relatives, to gather information about the claimant's conditions.
• Confer with medical specialists (physicans, psychiatrists, and psychologists) employed by Disability Determination Services.
• Send the claimant to a medical examination paid for by DDS.

What usually delays a claim is waiting for medical records information to be received. Therefore, whenever possible, you should obtain your own medical records and submit them when you apply (making sure, of course, to keep a copy for yourself--Social Security has a terrible habit of losing information that's needed for a disability claim). That way, DDS doesn't have to wait until your doctor sends the records to the DDS.

Usually, once an examiner has all the medical evidence gathered, a claim decision follows shortly.